Finland was one stop from the gold medal game and then watched it slip away in the final minute. The Lions built a 2-0 lead, absorbed long stretches without the puck, and still carried a 2-1 edge into the third. Canada tied it at even strength, then won it on a late power play at 59:24 after Finland took a high-sticking minor with 2:35 left.
Finland Went Into Protect Mode at 2-0 and Never Got the Ice Back
Finland’s first 30 minutes were exactly what you draw up as an underdog: defend inside the dots, keep Canada to the outside, and cash the few chances you get. Mikko Rantanen’s power-play goal opened the scoring late in the first, and Erik Haula made it 2-0 early in the second off a turnover and a direct attack.
The problem was what happened next. Up two, Finland shifted from countering with pace to clearing with hope. The neutral zone stopped being a place to connect exits, and it became a place to dump pucks out and change. Canada started reloading through the middle with speed, Finland’s forwards got pinned lower, and the game tilted into long defensive reps.
The shot count tells the story of that momentum swing. It was 8-8 after one and finished 39-16 for Canada. That is not bending but not breaking. That is giving a high-end team repeated entries until something finally falls.
This was a coaching decision as much as a player execution issue. Finland had a two-goal cushion and chose to play the clock instead of pushing the puck back 200 feet. Against Connor McDavid and Nathan MacKinnon, that posture turns a lead into a holding action.
Special Teams Flipped the Game
Finland’s special teams built the lead. Special teams also ended the game.
The first turning point was a high stick that gave Canada a power play in the second period. Sam Reinhart tipped in the 2-1 goal at 34:20, and the goal changed the game state immediately. Finland’s attack dried up after that point. The focus became survival shifts, short clears, and line changes instead of controlled exits.
Canada’s tie came at 50:34 when Shea Theodore’s point shot beat Juuse Saros through traffic. Finland protested for goalie interference but stayed with the call on the ice and did not challenge.
Related: Guide to the 2026 Winter Olympics Men’s Hockey Tournament
Then came the deciding sequence. With 2:35 left, Niko Mikkola took a high-sticking penalty on MacKinnon. Canada set up, McDavid ran the puck to the middle, and MacKinnon scored the winner at 59:24. Finland challenged for offside on the entry, but the goal stood.
Two high-sticking minors in the third period gave Canada the runway it needed. Finland did not lose this game because it failed to score enough. It lost because it handed Canada power-play time late while already defending more than it could sustain.
Finland’s Staff Has to Answer the Momentum Problem
My biggest note would be: Finland lost as soon as it gave up momentum. A coaching staff’s job is to ensure the strategy to keep a lead.
Finland’s best minutes came from the overwhelming aggression in the first period; Canada was switching sloppily and on their toes. Once the lead hit 2-0, Finland stopped taking those transition reps. The third period became a cycle of defending, clearing, changing, then defending again.
Related: 3 Takeaways From Finland’s 4-1 Loss to Slovakia at the 2026 Milan Olympics
That approach can work in short bursts. It does not work for a full period against a roster that can keep three dangerous lines rolling. Finland’s bench also tightened into heavier usage for its top players, which is natural in a semifinal, but the tactical posture still needs to support those players. The job is not only to survive. The job is to regain the puck and spend time in the other end.
Finland had Canada on the ropes at 2-0 and chose a conservative style that invited wave after wave. When the legs get heavy and the puck stays in your end, the penalties follow. I think the concerns about the current coaching staff are still a significant issue that needs addressing for future national games.
Finland still has a medal game left. Beyond that, the coaching staff has to prove it can manage a lead without handing control to an elite opponent.
